Another RARE Addition To The Fleet! TDB-10 By The Duck Boat Company

Anthony Babich

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About a year ago, I was converting the original 1994 VHS Cassette For The Duck Boat Company as Liz & Tom Olsen of East Dennis, MA were transitioning the old archives left by Bill & Dean Clark of Maine the original founders of The Duck Boat Co. In passing through the many pages, articles and images left in this treasure box they had provided me to digitize, I came across a boat model I had never knew existed, in the presence of the TDB history. The TDB-10. Designed in 1988 as a 1-man layout option originally designed to be towed to salt marsh, creeks rivers etc.. offering customers the ability to navigate waterways that were out of reach for the legendary 14 Classic & 17 Classic style hulls at the time. During the late 1980's as the TDB brand continued to gain momentum and popularity increased, this new design was offered from 1988-1992 with what we have learned around only a dozen or so were built within this time as production turned over to the 16' Scull Boat and due to the factory fire in the mid 90's the molds were unfortunately lost forever. The boat had appealing lines, and I was interested in presenting this traditional style hull alongside TDB at our many shows here in the Northeast and so I set off to find this needle in a haystack!

Last month, though some rigorous researching, tracking down contacts and much patience I came to find this one of a kind TDB-10 located in the hills of Riegelsville, PA. The owner had purchased this boat brand new from Christian the (second) owner of The Duck Boat Co, who displayed the boat in the hopes of future production / sales. The owner expressed interest in immediate purchase at the show located in Harrisburg, PA (the start of the large outdoor show that continues to take place even today) and reluctantly Christian sold the floor display model.

This hull a 1992 built in September the same year & month of my birth lol will be treasured within my duck boat collection! The boat has been kept inside a barn for many years, hunted only a few times on the Susquehanna river for puddlers. The hull measures 10' Long with a 4' Beam with a dry-weight of 130lbs. Drafting approximately 3" rated for a 5hp outboard. The boat is all hand-layed fiberglass which is very strong and includes a 3-runner hull design for ease of loading and hauling off the marsh.

Right now, the boat will be used within the Catskill Mountain rivers near my upstate, NY property for wood ducks, puddlers and scouting but I do plan to haul her home here to Long Island, NY come mid-end November where she will splash on The Great South Bay with a 5hp Yamaha 2-stroke. I do plan to tow this boat out then attach the motor.

I have invited the owner and his son-in-law on a bay hunt sometime in January 2025, and will of course keep the updates coming! She will be presented for view at our 2025 March Duck Boat Show Event hosted by The LIDCA Long Island Decoy Collectors Association.

As of now, based on the overwhelming customer feedback and interest who knows if we will possibly see a return of the TDB-10 here in the future! It's looking good and I'm excited to see the performance, handling and use of this new member to the family arsenal!

For those who are interested in seeing the original lineup of the TDB line you can view the complete VHS here: 1996 TDB CONVERTED VHS KIT

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Very cool boat!
Has the lines of the Garvey sneakbox plan posted here recently.
Wonder how she handles a good chop??
 
Greg

I think Anthony is dialed in on finding duckboats. Once folks know you are in the game deals start coming your way. Anthony has a heck of a start to one of the best navies anywhere. He might need to build a warehouse to store them.
 
One of these days maybe I'll be lucky enough to have my own Sanford Compound! Look at all the room for boats & toys! The hunt never ends... :cool:

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I think Anthony is dialed in on finding duckboats. Once folks know you are in the game deals start coming your way. Anthony has a heck of a start to one of the best navies anywhere. He might need to build a warehouse to store them.
 
Some guys have all the luck!

I went back and looked at the Guenther Garvey, this TDB hull is a pretty darn good imitation, just slightly less LOA and maybe a hair taller sides.
 
Anthony

Those boats await restoration. Post resto they deserve to be kept. You're going to need a large building, especially since you've started while young. Plan for the future I say!

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Making some progress on the TDB-10!

Recently used the boat up here on Long Island for our first split! What an awesome lil platform. I towed the boat with my 16' Chincoteague Garvey and strapped on a 6hp Mercury 4-stroke. The boat is extremely stable and admittedly tows great with the 3 runner design. I managed to bag a solo limit of Black Ducks one morning before work.

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Now, I have hauled out the boat on stands and decided to put a fresh coat of Parker's Duck Boat Drab on the hull and newly purchased Mercury 15hp. The 15 Hp moves this rig like a rocket!! I managed 24mph solo. With the addition of decoys, gear, salt-hay and fueled up I expect to see some good numbers with this setup.

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I reached out to a local metal fabrication shop before the holidays and had some custom flap mounts made up. These mounts will be installed on both sides of the cockpit and towards the rear. The forward section will have a permanent spray shield designed. This will allow the boat ultimate concealment and I can tuck in a push pole securely. With my height I like having the flaps slightly higher and will be able to stack decoys on those flaps when setting up / retrieval.

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Fuel Tank Limited Edition March Grass Color LOL

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This will be mounted in the bow for weight distribution, storage space and comfort space.


I had placards made to affix to the boat, as these registration decals will not stick to the fiberglass. Again I used the Parker Paint to bland in with the hull.

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